Staff Favorites - Jim Boyce

Reviews

The Begude Pinot Noir Rose is a top rose every summer and the 2014 vintage does not disappoint! Wild strawberry and cherry shines through from the Pinot Noir, with refreshing acidity and a bone dry finish.

The Puelles Blanco is undeniably a top white wine deal every year! Vibrant citrus and refreshing acidity shine with nice weight and minerality that keeps you coming back for more. This should be your house white wine for summer!

We, along with enough customers (and critics) to quickly sell out the last couple batches, fell in love with the Cut Spike whiskey. The first time we tasted this American Single Malt we were floored. This current bottling is a bit brighter, with great clove, ginger and banana bread spice notes. Grab a bottle while you can! 'Merica!

This is a hell of a Zinfandel for $20! Hailing from 80+ year old vines from family owned and operated vineyards, this 2013 Saini hits your nose with raspberry jam, fresh picked blackberries, and bright floral notes. The palate has lush, dark fruit with a nice cut of acidity. 2013 is a stellar year for Dry Creek Zin! 50% American oak, 50% French oak.

If you are in need of a mid week pizza or pasta red, look no further! This is a 50/50 blend of Dolcetto and Barbera. Fresh strawberry and cherry fruit join dried herbs and a touch earth on the palate to make a really friendly food wine. It's a great wine for a party or BBQ!

This wine is an incredible value that should not be missed. Floral and citrusy with a vibrant, mineral driven palate. This drinks way beyond the entry level pricing. Another stellar Direct Import selection!

Amici Napa Cabernet has been a favorite for quite some time now. The 2010 vintage was fantastic for cabs in the area and it really shows in the bottling. Blackberry, blueberry, cassis, a touch of vanilla and oak spice. Drinking well now and will reward another 10 years in the cellar.

The Mas Codina Cava is easily a top sparkler in the store at $14. It is the house sparkling wine for most of our staff and has even been the wedding sparkler of choice, which speaks to the quality! Well balanced with a touch of red fruit from the pinot, green apple skin, beautiful mineral qualities, and a dry finish.

I was just reminded how great this wine is at our last staff tasting. It beat out many other wines at 2+ times the price! Great rose petal & lavender aromatics with beautiful purity and balance. Incredible value!

The Marine Layer bottling from Banshee is made up of a blend of "lighter, ethereal" barrels of single vineyards around greater Sonoma. The nose is full of fresh picked red berries with light spice and wet stone qualities. The palate continues with pretty red cherry and cranberry fruit, with earthen minerality and salinity. As mentioned, this Pinot really opens up with a decant and will reward cellar time!

The 2012 Cuvee Foudre stole the show for me. This wine is only made during the best Grenache and Mourvedre vintages and the 2012 is the first bottling under the Cuvee Foudre label since 2005! Consisting of the best lots of each varietal, the blend is 40% Grenache, 30% Mourvedre, and 30% Syrah. Beautiful aromatics of freshly ground pepper, raspberry and blackberry fruits, licorice and dried herbs abound. The palate is juicy and savory, with great mineral, firm tannins and incredible balance. Give it a couple years to really start showing off!

The 2012 Segromigno is Untis homage to the Tuscan town their grandfather Guiseppe was born. The blend is made up of 76 % Sangiovese and 24% Montepulciano (their 2.5 acres planted is more than anyone in Sonoma County). This powerful wine has brooding black cherry, baking spices, mocha, and an earthy component from the Montepulciano. The power is beautifully balanced by fresh fruits and crisp acidity making it approachable in the near term. This wine begs for braised meats or big pastas!

Their Zinfandel, a long time customer and staff favorite, shows off their philosophy of blending as a true art form in the winemaking process. The 2012 Unti Zinfandel consists of 76% Zinfandel off the Primitivo vineyard planted in 1998, 12% Petite Syrah for color and body, 7% Barbera for acidity, and 5% Syrah. It has rich, bright red raspberry fruit, a touch of pepper spice, great acid, and a mild tanic finish. This Zin is impeccably balanced and while drinking beautifully now, it will reward a few years in the cellar.

With the last couple vintages being tough to beat, the 2013 managed to take the quality up another notch! They continued to source from amazing sites throughout Sonoma County and it really shows. Fresh, pure red fruit, a touch of earth and floral notes, with great acid to keep everything in perfect harmony. It's very hard to find a better Pinot Noir at this price.

90% French Oak/ 10% SS aging, Heintz vineyard fruit. This is a stunning wine for $20. Very textural, rich but not weighty, well integrated oak, bold and focused with great cut and energy. Citrus, mango, and pineapple fruits with a touch of honey.

Fromm has been crushing it with their Pinot Noir the last couple vintages! Fresh red fruit and rose petal aromatics, vibrant and spicy mid palate, pure fruit without being rich or cloying, and fine tannins on the finish. Every sip continued to impress with overall vibrancy and balance. Outstanding stuff!

We don't receive the Willowbrook wines too often, but when we do they never fail to over-deliver! For $10, you are getting pure, delicious Syrah from a great Sonoma Valley site. Bacon fat, cracked black pepper, and a touch of smoke as soon as the cork is pulled. Pure black fruit, rich but not at all sweet, and savory notes with great balance. Dollar for dollar, this may be the best deal in the store right now!

The Banshee guys are killing it with the fruit sources for these pinots! Rich, ripe cherry and raspberry fruit, a touch of earth, and just enough acid to keep it from getting too sweet. Great party wine!

This second offering from Amici Cellars is a steal year after year! Beautiful Sonoma County fruit with a touch of new French oak. Raspberry, casic, mocha, vanilla, and a clean, softly tanic finish. Classic Sonoma Cabernet!

It's back! The Bench has been a customer favorite over the last couple vintages. Getting great Sonoma fruit at a $20 price tag is tough to do, and this Pinot really delivers. Pure red fruit, cola notes, some baking spice and a well integrated French Oak finish.

This is a slightly darker fruited Pinot Noir, full of dark raspberry, black cherry and currant, with great spice (30% whole cluster) and floral components. Great acidity keeps the wine fresh and vibrant, while the fine tanin of the finish really lends great depth. This is a complex pinot that is amazing now and will greatly reward a few years of patience!

With a property bordering (sometimes crossing into) the Pauillac region, the 2009 Peyrabon offeres a lot of wine for a small price tag! Straight forward blackberry and casis with a hint of blueberry, great minerality and soft tanin to boot. This wine is the definition of value!

This Red Blend from Marietta truly over delivers year after year. Pure, fresh, and wild berry fruit with a hint of earth and spice. Rich and juicy, but never sweet, this wine can please a crowd or your pickiest friend! With the quality of fruit going into the blend, it is almost impossible to beat at the under $15 price tag.

One of our favorite Direct Import deals, the San Venanzio is full of fresh pear and peaches and cream, with a refreshing, mineral driven finish that will make you wonder how that first glass disappeared so quickly!

The Chardonnay of the holiday season! This chardonnay, blended from five select barrels off the Oliver's vineyard, is drinking incredibly well right now! Such great focus, balance, and purity of fruit without over-the-top richness, this Talley wine reminded the staff of Chassagne Montrachet! Do not miss it!

This wine is very floral, rose and violet notes, alongside black cherry and blackberry fruit. The palate is leaner, but full of fresh currant, rich cherry and plum fruit, with an earthy, lightly tannic finish. A very interesting and delicious wine!

The 2012 Chardonnay from ABC is just unfair to other Chardonnays in the $20 range. Everything is done right with truly impeccable balance; creamy mid palate, texture, citrus and stone fruit, mild toast, and great mineral and acid to really round out the whole package. Serious wine for $20!

Our longtime staff and customer favorite Zinfandel from the Sobon Estate winemakers returns better than ever in 2012! Brambly and full of lush red fruit, this zin is ready to take on any picnic or backyard bbq. Shenandoah is an awesome party wine and crowd pleaser at $10. Stock up!

David Logsdon, the old Full Sail brewer/partner, really hit his stride with these beers. Clean and delicious, the brett really adds a great dry, complex finish to the bright citrus and pear (bottle conditioned with pear juice for natural carbonation) notes. Outstanding beer!

I've missed this beer. Every year Firestone Double Jack DIPA impresses me. Perfectly hoppy with great pine and grapefruit notes. Even after buying and drinking the third or fourth bottle, i haven't grown tired of this beer like i do with quite a few IPA's.

Exceptional. This bottle can match or outperform champagnes at twice the price. Amazing nose of citrus, green apple, and vanilla. Intriguingly full palate of pear, apple pie, and mineral notes with hints of baking spice. Absolutely delicious, pick a bottle up soon!

Fleury is one of K&L staff members favorite Champagne producers hands down. His wines are all of absolute top notch quality. This bottle is full of crisp cherry on the nose and weighty palate. The finish is quite dry yet lingers until the next sip. Fantastic.

Slightly tart and spicy on the nose, this is a standard farmhouse style ale. Plenty of citrus and grassy notes along with hints of banana and pepper on the light palate makes for a refreshing beer with a crisp finish (just as intended). Load up on a few for the warmer weather ahead!

This easy drinking cider is back; time to load up! Always a staff favorite, this bright, crisp and refreshing cider is a crowd pleaser (even though it is on the drier side) and a fantastic warm weather sipper. Works great as an alternative to beer or white wine as well.

I love this sour beer! Tart, vinegar-esq, funky aroma on this dark brow sour. Solid, not over the top acidity joins the tart cherry /slight strawberry flavors on the palate with just enough carbonation to go down smoothly. A great sour to start off with and my favorite for the $$.